12 Steps of Incest Survivors

1. In working the first step, when we “admitted we were powerless over the circumstances of our childhood–that our lives had become unmanageable,” we had at last found the courage to face the truth and tell it–we were practicing the principle of HONESTY.

2. In working the second step when we “came to trust that God, a Power greater than ourselves, would nurture, love and restore us to sanity,” we were practicing the principle of HOPE.

3. In working the third step when we “made a decision to begin a process of recovery and change, trusting in God as revealed in the Bible, to care for us and guide us in our journey,” we were practicing the principle of FAITH.

4. In working the fourth step when we “began an inventory of all that happened to us in our childhood,” we were practicing the principle of COURAGE.

5. In working the fifth step when we “admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another appropriate person, the truth of our feelings, attitudes and behaviors,” we were practicing the principle of INTEGRITY.

6. In working the sixth step when we “became willing to allow changes in our attitudes and feelings, and to make changes in our choices, decisions, and behaviors,” we were practicing the principle of WILLINGNESS.

7. In working the seventh step when we “made a list of all those who had hurt us, identified what was done to us, and allowed ourselves to validate, own, and understand the resulting feelings,” we were practicing the principle of HUMILITY.

8. In working the eighth step when we “became willing to forgive those who had harmed us, and to let go of the past,” we were practicing the principle of BROTHERLY LOVE.

9. In working the ninth step when we “recognized that our own attitudes and behaviors were imitative of our dysfunctional caretakers, and harmful not only to ourselves but to those around us, took responsibility for them and made appropriate amends where necessary,” we were practicing SELF-DISCIPLINE.

10. In working the tenth step when we “continued the process of discovery and recovery, making changes in our lives when necessary,” we were practicing the principle of PERSEVERANCE.

11. In working the eleventh step when we “sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, striving to allow that will and ours to become one and the same,” we were practicing the principle of EVER PRESENCE OF GOD.

12. In working the twelfth step “having achieved a Spiritual Awakening, characterized by a balance and harmony with ourselves, those around us, and God, we became willing to share our experience and hope with others like us,” we are practicing the principle of SERVICE.